Openness to Influence
The author of The Boundaries of Their Dwelling argues that writers should be as open to influence during revision as they are at the beginning of a project.
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Article Archive
Articles from Poet & Writers Magazine include material from the print edition plus exclusive online-only material.
Ten Questions for Allie Rowbottom
“It’s up to you to advocate for your books.” —Allie Rowbottom, author of Aesthetica
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Ten Ways of Being in the Weeds With Your Novel, and Ten Ways Out
The author of The Boundaries of Their Dwelling counts the many ways a novelist may get lost, but ultimately find a way through, a book project.
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Ten Questions for A. J. Bermudez
“The most challenging thing, for me, was believing that it could be done.” —A. J. Bermudez, author of Stories No One Hopes Are About Them
Ten Questions for Kate Baer
“I am only able to write because of consistent and reliable childcare.” —Kate Baer, author of And Yet
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The Quotidian and the Code
The author of The White Mosque troubles the boundary between realist and genre fiction.
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Ten Questions for Franny Choi
“The more you write, the more there will be to write about—so you’ve just gotta cut it off at some point!” —Franny Choi, author of The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On
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Old Verdurin in His Frock Coat: On Literature’s Found Objects
The author of White Mosque considers how writing holds space for the accidental, the random, and the stray.
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Ten Questions for Jeanna Kadlec
“The first draft is just telling the story to yourself.” —Jeanna Kadlec, author of Heretic
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Fiat Lux: On Literary Atmospheres
The author of The White Mosque charts the ambience of literary worlds.
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Ten Questions for Dani Shapiro
“Fixed ideas are always problematic when it comes to writing fiction.” —Dani Shapiro, author of Signal Fires
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Blessed Citation
The author of The White Mosque offers an ode to intertextuality.
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The Anthologist: A Compendium of Uncommon Collections
A look at four new anthologies, including Bigger Than Bravery: Black Resilience and Reclamation in a Time of Pandemic and When the Smoke Cleared: Attica Prison Poems and Journals.
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Page One: Where New and Noteworthy Books Begin
The first lines of a dozen noteworthy books, including Extinction Theory by Kien Lam and Liberation Day by George Saunders.
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Getting Paid
While some literary magazines pay up to a few hundred dollars for literary work, many don’t pay at all. A published writer offers an overview of how to find paying markets, when to publish for free, and tips for a submission strategy.
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5 Over 50: 2022
Essays by debut authors Madhushree Ghosh, Sari Botton, David Santos Donaldson, Shareen K. Murayama, and Jane Campbell.
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Ravenous With Story: A Profile of Celeste Ng
In her third novel, Our Missing Hearts, best-selling author Celeste Ng continues to explore the social and political pressures that shape family dynamics—this time in a story set in a contemporary dystopia that feels frighteningly familiar.
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Literary Magazines That Pay
A curated list of twenty-two literary magazines that pay writers cash for their creative contributions.
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Lit Mag Changes Exploitative Name
The Fall 2022 issue of Crazyhorse will be the last under a name that the editors now recognize as a “longstanding appropriation of Lakota culture.”
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New Dictionary Seeks Public Input
The Oxford Dictionary of African American English, slated for release in 2025, will involve a three-year-long multidisciplinary research project compiling terms popularized by speakers of African American English.
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Small Press Points: Black Lawrence Press
Black Lawrence Press’s Immigrant Writing Series was launched in response to a lack of book-publication options for immigrant writers, whose unique perspectives might not resonate with nonimmigrant editors.
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Literary MagNet: Abigail Chabitnoy
The author of In the Current Where Drowing Is Beautiful highlights five journals that first published her poems, including Peripheries and the Capilano Review.
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The Written Image: The Shape of Words
Dallas artist Simeen Farhat crafts text-inspired sculptures in a complex process that blends literary and figurative composition and reminds viewers of language’s physicality.
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Q&A: Giménez Takes Helm at Graywolf
Graywolf Press’s new publisher and executive director discusses the shifting landscape of literary publishing, her multidisciplinary career, and what collaboration means to her.
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Freedom Reads
An organization founded and directed by Reginald Dwayne Betts seeks to bring the spirit of literature into prisons by installing libraries and inviting theater productions, book clubs, and world-class writers inside carceral walls.
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